Anxiety and Psychological Stress Before Prenatal Screening in First-Time Mothers Who Conceived Through IVF/ICSI or Spontaneously.

Mothers' general anxiety, anxiety about the well-being of the child and psychological stress before prenatal testing was studied by comparing women who conceived through in vitro fertilization (IVF) or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) with women who conceived naturally. Before the first trimester screening test for Down's syndrome, a group of 51 women who conceived through IVF/ICSI and a group of 54 women who conceived spontaneously completed the State Scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (S-Anxiety; Spielberger, 1983), the Fear of Bearing a Physically or Mentally Handicapped Child Subscale of the Pregnancy-related Anxiety Questionnaire (PRAQ-R; Huizink et al., 2004), the Psychological Stress Measure (PSM; Lemyre & Tessier, 1988), and the Prenatal Psychosocial Profile (PPP; Curry, Campbell, & Christian, 1994). Women who conceived through IVF/ICSI had more elevated levels of general anxiety and psychological stress than the women who conceived naturally; however, no difference was observed between the two groups for anxiety specifically related to the health of the child. These results underline the need to monitor women's emotional state after conception via IVF/ICSI-when counseling usually ends-and around the time of the first trimester screening. Counseling might thus be extended.

"S'il vous plaît docteur, mettez-moi en arrêt"! Certificats médicaux pour raisons psychologiques ["Doctor please, give me a sick leave"!: medical certificates for psychological reasons].

General practitioners are regularly called to evaluate the psychological work capacity of patients. The implicit motivation behind the explicit reason for requesting a sick leave is linked to the subject's history and the way he transfers it in his professional life. An incapacity to work harbours a variety of challenges for the patient, the physician and their relationship. In order to get a better understanding of all the issues at stake, the doctor should understand the significances that represents the work to the patient and the consequences of a sick leave and its associated transference and countertransference issues.

Time of injection determines the effect of alpha-MSH antiserum on DA neurons in psychological stress

Male rats were subjected to "psychological stress" which consisted in 10 sec footshock on the first day followed 24 hr later by a 10 sec stay in the experimental chamber without shock. Intravenous antiserum against alpha-MSH markedly changed the functional state of mesencephalic and hypothalamic DA neurons (assessed by histochemical microfluorimetry) when administered before the second session but not when given before the first session. These observations reveal an interesting parallelism in the temporal characteristics of the effects of alpha-MSH on avoidance behavior and central DA systems.

The role of energetic value in dynamic brain response adaptation during repeated food image viewing.

The repeated presentation of simple objects as well as biologically salient objects can cause the adaptation of behavioral and neural responses during the visual categorization of these objects. Mechanisms of response adaptation during repeated food viewing are of particular interest for better understanding food intake beyond energetic needs. Here, we measured visual evoked potentials (VEPs) and conducted neural source estimations to initial and repeated presentations of high-energy and low-energy foods as well as non-food images. The results of our study show that the behavioral and neural responses to food and food-related objects are not uniformly affected by repetition. While the repetition of images displaying low-energy foods and non-food modulated VEPs as well as their underlying neural sources and increased behavioral categorization accuracy, the responses to high-energy images remained largely invariant between initial and repeated encounters. Brain mechanisms when viewing images of high-energy foods thus appear less susceptible to repetition effects than responses to low-energy and non-food images. This finding is likely related to the superior reward value of high-energy foods and might be one reason why in particular high-energetic foods are indulged although potentially leading to detrimental health consequences.

A methodology for the adaptation of a PMP at the determination of a PMF

This paper presents a new type of very fine grid hydrological model based on the spatiotemporal repartition of a PMP (Probable Maximum Precipitation) and on the topography. The goal is to estimate the influence of this rain on a PMF (Probable Maximum Flood) on a catchment area in Switzerland. The spatiotemporal distribution of the PMP was realized using six clouds modeled by the advection-diffusion equation. The equation shows the movement of the clouds over the terrain and also gives the evolution of the rain intensity in time. This hydrological modeling is followed by a hydraulic modeling of the surface and subterranean flow, done considering the factors that contribute to the hydrological cycle, such as the infiltration, the resurgence and the snowmelt. These added factors make the developed model closer to reality and also offer flexibility in the initial condition that is added to the factors concerning the PMP, such as the duration of the rain, the speed and direction of the wind. All these initial conditions taken together offer a complete image of the PMF.

Adverse life events among community-dwelling persons aged 65-70 years: gender differences in occurrence and perceived psychological consequences.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the occurrence of selected adverse life events in young-old men and women, as well as their perceived psychological consequences. METHODS: In 2005, 1,422 participants in the Lausanne Cohort 65+ study, born in 1934-1938, self-reported whether they experienced any of 26 life events during the preceding year. Most participants (N = 1,309, 92%) completed the geriatric adverse life events scale during a face-to-face interview, by rating the level of stress associated with each event, as well as its impact on their psychological well-being. RESULTS: Overall, 72% of the participants experienced at least one of the 26 events in the preceding year (range 1-9). Disease affecting the respondent (N = 525) or a close relative (N = 276) was most frequent, as well as the death of a friend or non-close relative (N = 274). Women indicated a higher frequency of events (mean 2.1 vs. 1.7 events, P < 0.001), as well as a higher level of stress and a stronger negative impact on well-being than men. In multivariate analyses adjusting for self-rated health, depressive symptoms and comorbidity, female gender remained significantly associated with the level of stress and negative impact on psychological well-being. CONCLUSION: This exploratory study shows that several types of adverse life events frequently occur at age 65-70, with gender differences both in the frequency of reporting and consequences of these events. However, information on this topic is limited and studies based on different populations and designs are needed to better understand the impact of such events.

Life-history consequences of adaptation to larval nutritional stress in Drosophila.

Many animal species face periods of chronic nutritional stress during which the individuals must continue to develop, grow, and/or reproduce despite low quantity or quality of food. Here, we use experimental evolution to study adaptation to such chronic nutritional stress in six replicate Drosophila melanogaster populations selected for the ability to survive and develop within a limited time on a very poor larval food. In unselected control populations, this poor food resulted in 20% lower egg-to-adult viability, 70% longer egg-to-adult development, and 50% lower adult body weight (compared to the standard food on which the flies were normally maintained). The evolutionary changes associated with adaptation to the poor food were assayed by comparing the selected and control lines in a common environment for different traits after 29-64 generations of selection. The selected populations evolved improved egg-to-adult viability and faster development on poor food. Even though the adult dry weight of selected flies when raised on the poor food was lower than that of controls, their average larval growth rate was higher. No differences in proportional pupal lipid content were observed. When raised on the standard food, the selected flies showed the same egg-to-adult viability and the same resistance to larval heat and cold shock as the controls and a slightly shorter developmental time. However, despite only 4% shorter development time, the adults of selected populations raised on the standard food were 13% smaller and showed 20% lower early-life fecundity than the controls, with no differences in life span. The selected flies also turned out less tolerant to adult malnutrition. Thus, fruit flies have the genetic potential to adapt to poor larval food, with no detectable loss of larval performance on the standard food. However, adaptation to larval nutritional stress is associated with trade-offs with adult fitness components, including adult tolerance to nutritional stress.

Evidence for polygenic adaptation to pathogens in the human genome.

Most approaches aiming at finding genes involved in adaptive events have focused on the detection of outlier loci, which resulted in the discovery of individually "significant" genes with strong effects. However, a collection of small effect mutations could have a large effect on a given biological pathway that includes many genes, and such a polygenic mode of adaptation has not been systematically investigated in humans. We propose here to evidence polygenic selection by detecting signals of adaptation at the pathway or gene set level instead of analyzing single independent genes. Using a gene-set enrichment test to identify genome-wide signals of adaptation among human populations, we find that most pathways globally enriched for signals of positive selection are either directly or indirectly involved in immune response. We also find evidence for long-distance genotypic linkage disequilibrium, suggesting functional epistatic interactions between members of the same pathway. Our results show that past interactions with pathogens have elicited widespread and coordinated genomic responses, and suggest that adaptation to pathogens can be considered as a primary example of polygenic selection.

Les groupes de parole de prévention de la récidive au sein des SPIP: une évolution centrée sur la gestion du risque, entre théorie et adaptation pratique

En France, les différentes réorientations pénales et les missions confiées au Service Pénitentiaire d'Insertion et de Probation (SPIP) placent l'évaluation des risques de récidive et leur prévention au centre de la pratique professionnelle des Conseillers Pénitentiaires d'Insertion et de Probation (CPIP). Les récentes évolutions législatives des missions des SPIP, les mutations identitaires et des pratiques qu'elles impliquent -en particulier les Groupes de Paroles de Prévention de la Récidive (GPPR)-, caractérisent une évolution centrée sur la gestion du risque. Partant de critiques dans la littérature sur la notion de gestion du risque de récidive dans les pratiques pénales et de ce qu'elle induit dans les modes d'appréhension des sujets et dans les interventions professionnelles, l'article met en relation les réorientations vers une gestion du risque telles qu'elles peuvent apparaître dans les textes, missions et référentiel du SPIP, avec une évaluation des pratiques professionnelles centrées sur les GPPR intégrés au sein des SPIP. Y a-t-il infiltration et remodelage des pratiques ? Si c'est bien le cas, on examine où se situe le niveau pertinent de cette influence et du réaménagement des pratiques.

Considering context in psychological leadership research

Despite Lewin's identification of the importance of context in behavioral research over 70 years ago, leadership psychology tended to ignore the context. Only in the past 10 years has the context been more routinely included in psychological leadership research. We provide examples of leadership research that has explored the context, introduce the special issue articles, and provide suggestions for future research on the context of leadership.

Testing for local adaptation in brown trout using reciprocal transplants.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Local adaptation can drive the divergence of populations but identification of the traits under selection remains a major challenge in evolutionary biology. Reciprocal transplant experiments are ideal tests of local adaptation, yet rarely used for higher vertebrates because of the mobility and potential invasiveness of non-native organisms. Here, we reciprocally transplanted 2500 brown trout (Salmo trutta) embryos from five populations to investigate local adaptation in early life history traits. Embryos were bred in a full-factorial design and raised in natural riverbeds until emergence. Customized egg capsules were used to simulate the natural redd environment and allowed tracking the fate of every individual until retrieval. We predicted that 1) within sites, native populations would outperform non-natives, and 2) across sites, populations would show higher performance at 'home' compared to 'away' sites. RESULTS: There was no evidence for local adaptation but we found large differences in survival and hatching rates between sites, indicative of considerable variation in habitat quality. Survival was generally high across all populations (55% +/- 3%), but ranged from 4% to 89% between sites. Average hatching rate was 25% +/- 3% across populations ranging from 0% to 62% between sites. CONCLUSION: This study provides rare empirical data on variation in early life history traits in a population network of a salmonid, and large-scale breeding and transplantation experiments like ours provide powerful tests for local adaptation. Despite the recently reported genetic and morphological differences between the populations in our study area, local adaptation at the embryo level is small, non-existent, or confined to ecological conditions that our experiment could not capture.

Eager for fairness or revenge: psychological altruism in economics

To understand the human capacity for psychological altruism, one requires a proper understanding of how people actually think and feel. This paper addresses the possible relevance of recent findings in experimental economics and neuroeconomics to the philosophical controversy over altruism and egoism. After briefly sketching and contextualizing the controversy, we survey and discuss the results of various studies on behaviourally altruistic helping and punishing behaviour, which provide stimulating clues for the debate over psychological altruism. On closer analysis, these studies prove less relevant than originally expected because the data obtained admit competing interpretations such as people seeking fairness versus people seeking revenge. However, this mitigated conclusion does not preclude the possibility of more fruitful research in the area in the future. Throughout our analysis, we provide hints for the direction of future research on the question.

Adaptation and the genetics of social behaviour.

In recent years much progress has been made towards understanding the selective forces involved in the evolution of social behaviour including conflicts over reproduction among group members. Here, I argue that an important additional step necessary for advancing our understanding of the resolution of potential conflicts within insect societies is to consider the genetics of the behaviours involved. First, I discuss how epigenetic modifications of behaviour may affect conflict resolution within groups. Second, I review known natural polymorphisms of social organization to demonstrate that a lack of consideration of the genetic mechanisms involved may lead to erroneous explanations of the adaptive significance of behaviour. Third, I suggest that, on the basis of recent genetic studies of sexual conflict in Drosophila, it is necessary to reconsider the possibility of within-group manipulation by means of chemical substances (i.e. pheromones). Fourth, I address the issue of direct versus indirect genetic effects, which is of particular importance for the study of behaviour in social groups. Fifth, I discuss the issue of how a genetic influence on dominance hierarchies and reproductive division of labour can have secondary effects, for example in the evolution of promiscuity. Finally, because the same sets of genes (e.g. those implicated in chemical signalling and the responses that are triggered) may be used even in species as divergent as ants, cooperative breeding birds and primates, an integration of genetic mechanisms into the field of social evolution may also provide unifying ideas.